


living in your light

by sailingtovalinor



Category: Avengers Assemble (Cartoon), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2017-05-26
Packaged: 2018-11-05 00:34:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11002248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sailingtovalinor/pseuds/sailingtovalinor
Summary: I saw a cute comic on Facebook, promptly shared with Jen, and proceeded to scream at her about my stevetony headcanon. It's been many months, but I thought I'd post it here as well. Largely unedited, because if I were to do that, this would never get posted.Fluff, and nothing else.





	living in your light

**Author's Note:**

> I saw a cute comic on Facebook, promptly shared with Jen, and proceeded to scream at her about my stevetony headcanon. It's been many months, but I thought I'd post it here as well. Largely unedited, because if I were to do that, this would never get posted.
> 
> Fluff, and nothing else.

Tony sticks a butterfly bandage over the cut on his cheekbone and breathes a sigh of relief, hands gripping the sink tightly for a moment before releasing it.

It's not every day that Tony ends up being the only Avenger leaving a battle with an injury--and nothing more than a cut, at that-- but he supposes he should be grateful that that is the case today. He’s safe, his team is safe, and they’re all fortunate, because Tony just so happens to own a property out here in a relatively secluded area of California. 

It’s quiet here, quiet in a way that the city’s never been.

And Tony—city boy that he is—is strangely glad for it.

All is silent when Tony steps out of his bedroom. Most of the lights around the house have been turned down low, and the doors to the bedrooms near his are closed. He debates for a moment, thinks about going right back inside to sleep, but he’s feeling a little restless, a little buzzed from adrenaline and he knows sleep wouldn’t come to him, not just yet.

Tony’s wandering through the hallway when he finds Steve in the family room, curled up in a chair that he'd dragged over to the windows, face tilted up towards the sky.

He hesitates at the doorway for a moment, looking first at Steve's moonlit profile, then around the room. Nat's sleeping on the sofa, face turned into the cushions, and someone (probably Steve, Tony thinks) has laid a thick blanket over her. He turns back to look at Steve, only to realise that Steve’s looking straight at him. Caught, Tony wrinkles his nose at him (Steve laughs silently), then makes his way over to Steve.

Steve shifts in his seat, as if considering giving it up to Tony, but Tony sits on the floor and rests against the armchair by Steve's feet. 

"Can't sleep?" Tony asks quietly.

Steve shakes his head no, and Tony frowns, but then Steve whispers, "It's dark here." and Tony's momentarily confused instead of worried.

"Um, yes it is?" he says, communicating his confusion to Steve via an exaggerated frown.

Steve laughs, and it's quiet, but Tony feels it warming him from the inside out. He wants to smile, but he determinedly keeps the frown on his face, even though it's beginning to hurt a little bit.

Steve's laughter fades. He's still looking at Tony, and there's something that comes over his face; something soft and infinitely gentle and something else that Tony doesn't dare to interpret.

Steve's lip twitches a little bit and the moment's gone. He nudges Tony in the side with his knee, and Tony squirms away. He's turning his head towards Steve at the same moment Steve leans down close to him, whispering "The stars." into Tony's ear.

Tony's heart stutters in his chest. Steve's face is close; Tony can see the blue of his eyes glinting silver in the moonlight, feel the puff of air hitting his cheek as Steve exhales. He could kiss Steve if he wanted, he could tilt his face up into Steve's, slide a hand into his hair to— He stills instead, and Steve's eyes flickers down, then up, meeting Tony's eyes. He's smiling, a little thing playing at his lips, but when Tony doesn't return the smile, it falls off Steve's face, and he begins to pull away.

Tony's mentally scrambling, desperately seeking ways to get Steve to come close to him again, and in his panic he says, "Um, do you want?" 

Steve freezes, eyes widening; and Tony would find it comical, except his heart is thundering in his chest and he's mentally berating himself for the stupid, stupid thing he's just—

"Um. What?"

Steve's staring at him, and Tony knows that he's required to form some kind of intelligent response here, but he can't look away from Steve, can't look away from the flush that's rising in his cheeks. 

Steve clears his throat a little. Tony's eyes snap to his.

"Tony," Steve whispers, "what did you—"

"The stars," Tony whispers back, quickly, and then realises that he's not making any sense at all. "I mean, I could take you somewhere, if you want. High up. I could fly you, so you can see the stars?"

Steve's staring at him, again, and this time Tony's not admiring the flush on Steve's skin—Tony's pretty sure he's the one flushing now, and not very prettily either; he feels warm all over and not at all in the pleasant way Steve's smile had warmed him earlier. He's mentally berating himself, internally yelling at himself for possibly having ruined his and Steve's friendship, when Steve looks away, then back at him again. There's something in his eyes, something a lot like hope, and Tony's promised himself that he wouldn't read things into the many ways Steve's looked at him—but Tony sees the hope in Steve's eyes, and can't deny it, because Tony feels the same hope blooming to life in his weary heart.

"Tony," Steve says softly, and it feels like a caress, "you would do that? For me?"

"I— Yes, for you. For you, I'd—" Tony trails off. He didn't finish the sentence, but he knows that the silence speaks for itself.

He thinks maybe he should feel terrified, except he doesn't because it's Steve. With Steve, he knows he’s safe.

Until the silence goes on for a little too long, Steve still saying nothing in the face of Tony's quiet confession. Despite himself, Tony begins to start freaking out, but then Steve makes a tiny noise in the back of his throat, and he's suddenly surging forward, hands coming up to cradle Tony's face. His lips press against Tony's, and Tony's own hands fly up, one sliding into Steve's hair, the other gripping at Steve's waist, fingers curling into Steve’s thick sweater. Tony lets out a quiet, breathless moan when Steve pulls away, but Steve's holding Tony tighter and pulling him closer and oh, Steve's manoeuvring Tony into his lap and Tony can't find it in himself to mind in the slightest, even though they're making out just a few metres away from Natasha—

He whispers as much against Steve’s lips, and Steve pulls back from Tony, flushing, trying to put some distance between them even with Tony straddling his lap. Tony grins wickedly, bends his head down to lick a trail up Steve's neck to where the flush is rising to his cheeks. He nips Steve's jaw, and when Steve's mouth falls opens, Tony covers it with his, swallowing Steve's little gasp, the kiss turning dirty before gentling into something soft and promising.

This time, when Tony pulls away, he rests his forehead against Steve's. They're breathing each other's air, and he's not in the most comfortable position, but it's Steve, and for Steve... For Steve, Tony knows he would do anything.

*

Tony's leaning back on his elbows, staring up at the sky, and wow. It's incredible; he's forgotten what it's like to be able to see so many stars without actually needing a telescope. He loves the city, he does, but he wishes there was a way to shut down all the lights in the city so he could get this same view of the night sky even when they're in the Tower.

Steve would love that, would love going up to the landing pad just to star-gaze.

He glances over at Steve, meaning to say this to him, only to find Steve gazing at him. Tony raises an eyebrow, at which Steve smiles, but he doesn't look away.

Tony mock-frowns, then leans over quickly to press a kiss against Steve's still-smiling mouth.

That gets him an even wider smile, but Steve still doesn't look away.

"Okay," Tony sighs, pretending to be frustrated, "I brought you all the way out here—and you're not light, by the way, big guy—so you could see the stars like you wanted, but—"

"I know the sky's full of stars," Steve cuts in, "but I'd much rather look at you."

Tony's left with his mouth hanging open, and he's pretty sure he's never looked dumber, but he's also sure that he's never been happier than he is in that moment. It's sweeping through him, this overwhelming joy he feels and it's all because of Steve. Tony feels fit to burst with it, and he's half-heartedly glaring at Steve for cutting him off, but full-heartedly throwing himself into Steve's arms and Steve's laughing and laughing and Tony's now swallowing his laughter, and he wants to stay like this, always, with Steve's arms wrapped around him and Steve’s lips pressed against his own and Steve’s heart pounding alongside his, beat for beat.

*

The world spins, and the stars shift against the night sky.

**Author's Note:**

> [Here's the comic which inspired this little thing.](https://www.facebook.com/sundaekidsillustration/photos/a.1523250274627478.1073741829.1522018888083950/1784360425183127/?type=3&theater)


End file.
